Overview

This book represents an important meeting ground in the primatology field by exploring the various primate models that have been used in the reconstruction of early human behavior. While some models are based on the proposition that a key behavioral feature such as hunting, eating of seeds or monogamous mating led to the evolutionary separation of apes and humans, other models suggest that one primate species, such as the baboon or chimpanzee, best exemplifies the behavior of our early ancestors. Several contributors to the book take the position that no single primate is a good model and contend instead that a model must be eclectic. One of the more innovative essays suggests that ancestral behavioral states can, in fact, be derived by comparing the behavior of all living hominid (ape and human) species. Additionally, several other contributors analyze and discuss the concept of model-making, noting deficiencies in earlier models while offering suggestions for future development. Although it is true that a powerful conceptual model for reconstructing hominid behavior does not yet exist, The Evolution of Human Behavior: Primate Models suggests ways one may be constructed based on behavioral ecology and evolutionary theory.

Full Product Details

Author:   Warren G. Kinzey
Publisher:   State University of New York Press
Imprint:   State University of New York Press
Dimensions:   Width: 15.20cm , Height: 2.50cm , Length: 22.90cm
Weight:   0.445kg
ISBN:  

9780887062681

ISBN 10:   0887062687
Pages:   316
Publication Date:   05 December 1986
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand  
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Table of Contents

Introduction Warren G. Kinzey I. Behavioral Innovations 1. Gathering by Females: The Chimpanzee Model Revisited and the Gathering Hypothesis Nancy M. Tanner 2. Transportation of Resources: Reconstructions of early hominid socioecology: a critique of primate models Richard Potts II. Primate-derived Models 3. African Apes: The significance of African apes for reconstructing human social evolution Richard W. Wrangham 4. Chimpanzees: Pygmy chimpanzees and common cimpanzees: models for the behavioral ecology of the earliest hominids Randall L. Susman 5. Baboons: Baboon models and muddles Shirley C. Strum & Willam Mitchell 6. Monogamous Primates: A primate model for human mating systems Warren G. Kinzey 7. Howler Monkeys: Diet, dimorphism, and demography: perspectives from howlers to hominids Carolyn M. Crockett III. Paleoecological Models 8. Cytogenetic Methods: Social and ecological aspects of primate cytogenetics Jon Marks Subject Index

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Warren G. Kinzey is Professor and Chairman of the Department of Anthropology at City College.

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